Soft PC Shipments in Fourth Quarter Lead to Annual Decline as HP Holds Onto Top Spot, According to IDC

Worldwide PC shipments totaled 89.8 million units in the fourth quarter
of 2012 (4Q12), down 6.4% compared to the same quarter in 2011 and worse
than the forecasted decline of 4.4%, according to the International Data
Corporation (IDC)
Worldwide
Quarterly PC Tracker. Although the quarter marked the beginning of a
new stage in the PC industry with the launch of Windows 8, its impact
did not quickly change recently sluggish PC demand, and the PC market
continued to take a back seat to competing devices and sustained
economic woes. As a result, the fourth quarter of 2012 marked the first
time in more than five years that the PC market has seen a year-on-year
decline during the holiday season.

The lackluster fourth quarter results were not entirely surprising given
the spate of challenges the PC market faced over the course of 2012. IDC
had expected the second half of 2012 to be difficult. Consumers as well
as PC vendors and distribution channels continued to be diverted from PC
sales by ongoing demand for tablets and smartphones. In addition,
questions about the use of touch on Windows PCs vs. tablets slowed
commercial spending on PCs.

"Although the third quarter was focused on the clearing of Windows 7
inventory, preliminary research indicates the clearance did not
significantly boost the uptake of Windows 8 systems in Q4," said Jay
Chou, senior research analyst with IDC's Worldwide
Quarterly PC Tracker. "Lost in the shuffle to promote a
touch-centric PC, vendors have not forcefully stressed other features
that promote a more secure, reliable and efficient user experience. As
Windows 8 matures, and other corresponding variables such as Ultrabook
pricing continue to drop, hopefully the PC market can see a reset in
both messaging and demand in 2013."

"As anticipated, the U.S. market had a rough ending, dropping 4.5% in
the fourth quarter and contributing to a decline of 7% for the full year
2012," said David
Daoud, research director, IDC U.S.
Quarterly PC Tracker. "Consumers expected all sorts of cool PCs with
tablet and touch capabilities. Instead, they mostly saw traditional PCs
that feature a new OS (Windows 8) optimized for touch and tablet with
applications and hardware that are not yet able to fully utilize these
capabilities. Despite a generally weak performance, some leading brands
managed do to well relative to the market. HP, Lenovo, Asus, and Samsung
were among the top performers, taking advantage of some consumer
interest in Windows 8, and a push to build up their presence ahead of
2013."

Regional Highlights

United States – The U.S. market struggled in the fourth quarter
of 2012, although to a lesser extent than expected given the channel
replenishment activity that occurred in December. Some consumer activity
took place in conjunction with the release of Windows 8. However,
limitations in product offerings, in particular for touch screen Tablet
PCs, led consumers to once again delay purchases. Consumer-focused
vendors like HP and Asian majors like Lenovo, Asus, and Samsung managed
strong performances, partly in response to modest consumer demand, and
partly due to channel activity in December ahead of the anticipated 1H13
Windows 8 push. The rest of the industry continued to take a
wait-and-see approach as consumer attitudes toward Windows 8 are
clarified.

EMEA – The EMEA PC market performed in line with expectations in
4Q12, with shipments declining at a mid single-digit rate from a year
ago. Although sell-in of Windows 8 systems accelerated by early
December, helped by the new Ultra Slim offerings, consumers continued to
shun PC purchases in favor of attractively priced tablets and
smartphones, particularly during the end-of-year Christmas season.
Commercial purchases also remained weak, softened by persisting
uncertainty in the economic situation across the region.

Japan – Japan registered growth that was slightly positive, but
still several points below forecast. Consumer demand was expected to be
weak as the first batch of Windows 8 machines was markedly more
expensive than previous generation models. However, the impending ending
of Windows XP support helped to boost commercial volume, where companies
have been steadily upgrading to Windows 7 for the past several quarters.

Asia/Pacific (excluding Japan) – The Asia/Pacific region came in
slightly below forecasts, as channels in most countries focused on
clearing out existing Windows 7 inventory before bringing in fresh
Windows 8 stock. China was not too far off target, though ongoing
sluggishness in the economy as well as a slowdown in public sector
projects kept the PC market there suppressed this quarter.

Vendor Highlights

HP continued to defend its top position in IDC's worldwide
ranking, recovering somewhat from past weakness in key markets. An
aggressive push for Windows 8 volume helped the vendor make gains in
Asia/Pacific and its home turf in the U.S. HP struggled in EMEA but
posted the first year-over-year growth in Asia/Pacific in four quarters.
Total volume was nearly flat from a year ago, but better than the
overall market.

Lenovo outpaced the market with growth of over 8%. Volume reached
a new record-high of more than 14 million units, with continued success
in channel wins in the U.S. and EMEA. Despite the positive performance,
Lenovo's gains remained significantly smaller than several quarters ago
when the company was besting market growth by nearly 30%.

Dell continued to lose ground as it faces aggressive competition
from other leaders and looks for better margins. Worldwide shipments
were down over 20% year over year – faster than declines over the past
several years – with U.S. volume declining almost as much. The firm did
manage sequential growth in most other markets.

Acer Group, like a few other vendors, remains heavily dependent
on consumer spending. As a result, it has continued to suffer as
consumers focus on other products. At the same time, Acer's cautious
approach to the Windows 8 transition has contributed to slower notebook
shipments.

ASUS held onto its top 5 spot globally and stretched the distance
between itself and other consumer-focused vendors with growth of 5.6%
year on year. The firm racked-up strong gains across many regions, where
its often innovative yet price-conscious offerings still managed to take
root in spite of an increasingly tough landscape.

In addition to the table above, a graphic showing the relative market
shares of the top 5 PC vendors over the previous five quarters is
available on IDC.com. The chart is intended for public use in online
news articles and social media. Instructions on how to embed this
graphic can be found by viewing this press
release on IDC.com.

Shipments include shipments to distribution channels or end users. OEM
sales are counted under the vendor/brand under which they are sold.

PCs include Desktops, Portables, Mini Notebooks and do not include
handhelds, workstations, x86 Servers and Media Tablets (i.e. iPad and
Android-based Tablets). Data for all vendors are reported for calendar
periods.

IDC's Worldwide Quarterly PC Tracker gathers PC market data in over 80
countries by vendor, form factor, brand, processor brand and speed,
sales channel and user segment. The research includes historical and
forecast trend analysis as well as price band and installed base data.

For more information, or to subscribe to the research, please contact
Kathy Nagamine at 650-350-6423 or knagamine@idc.com.

About IDC TrackersIDC
Tracker products provide accurate and timely market size, vendor
share, and forecasts for hundreds of technology markets from more than
100 countries around the globe. Using proprietary tools and research
processes, IDC's Trackers are updated on a semiannual, quarterly, and
monthly basis. Tracker results are delivered to clients in user-friendly
excel deliverables and on-line query tools. The IDC Tracker Charts app
allows users to view data charts from the most recent IDC Tracker
products on their iPhone
and iPad.

About IDCIDC is the premier global provider of market
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and trends in over 110 countries. For more than 48 years, IDC has
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